Firenze
by adurere
Summary: Kel finds herself forced to act the part of a theif as she struggles to find a lost friend deep in enemy territory. KD or KN not sure which yet!
1. Chapter One

A/N: I couldn't stand what I had written, it moved too slowly for my taste so I have combined, chopped, pasted, sliced, diced, mixed and scrambled everything together to create this mess of a story I like to call my fanfic. Please tell me what you think, review, flames appreciated (they help me straighten things out), let me know what is good, bad, ugly anything else you feel like!

Disclaimer: (This is for the whole story) It is all Tamora Pierce's okay! All of it!!! That means ALL!!!! Except for what is mine and that is what isn't hers!!!

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Kel opened her eyes onto a blurry room. Blinking to clear her vision she slid out from under her blankets, shivering as her feet touched cold stone. Early morning sunlight filtered in through her shutters reflecting off of the dew that clung to everything exposed to the night air. Yawning and stretching she pulled her glaive down from the weapons wrack and began a complex set of pattern dances, whipping the glinting steel faster and faster until her arms tired. Jump had retreated to a rug in the corner well away from the capped pole arm and its mistress, settling in amidst a few sleepy sparrows pecking at some dried fruit. A loud resounding shout came from the hall, causing Kel to pause her exercise and shoot a surprised dance at her door. Placing the glaive back in its place, she quickly threw on a soft pair of breeches and a cotton shirt, easing the door open to peer out into the corridor.

Another shout came from around the corner followed by a loud banging. Kel shook her head and grabbed her dagger, sliding it into the small of her back just in case. Sneaking around the corner she came upon a sight that made her jaw drop. A young page, white as a bedsheet, was hammering upon a door, almost in hysterics.

"Who is it you are trying to get a hold of?" Kel asked him.

Out of breath the boy all but collapsed on the floor and gasped, "Neal. Must come immediately. Lord Wyldon. Its Dom…" he stopped gulping in as much air as his lungs could hold.

Kel froze at Dom's name. Her face became stone as she strode up to Neal's door. "Go to the library on the second floor," she commanded, "I will check the mess hall." The boy paused and started at her. "GO!" He took off at a sprint in the opposite direction.

Worried by the boy's condition, Kel hurried down the hall and, mind racing, somehow found herself in the mess. Eyes scanning the tables full of pages, squires and the occasional knight, she spotted who she was looking for. Her Yamani Lump face still in place, she strode up to the green eyed knight and gripped his shoulder. Surprised he turned to look up at her, "Why Kel! How nice of…" his greeting died out as he noticed her blank expression. Rising immediately, he made his excuses to the table and followed her back into the hall.

"Kel what is it." Neal looked at her questioningly.

"Lord Wyldon needs to see you." He opened his mouth but she interrupted before he had a chance to say anything, "Now."

He looked into her eyes and thought better of speaking the words forming in his mind. Giving her a quick nod he set off toward Lord Wyldon's office. Kel, very much in a daze, followed him.

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Outside of Wyldon's office, Kel began pacing.

_Dom is alright. He has to be. Well then what could have happened_? Kel thought to herself. Frustrated she stopped and leaned against the wall, sliding down it into a sitting position to wait it out. Moments later Neal came stumbling out looking like death.

"Neal…" her voice trailed off.

"Wyldon." He croaked and cleared his throat and tried again, "Wyldon wants to see you."

Kel nodded and stood, walking in to her best friend's embrace as he shivered. Pushing back from her, he ran his fingers through his hair and said, "I'm okay. Lord Wyldon will explain." Kel surveyed him and made up her mind he would be okay for a moment. Stepping up to the great oak doors she sighed and knocked.

"Enter."

Finding herself in Wyldon's office, Kel could feel a panic rising in her chest. Shaking her head at her own folly, she wiped her palms on her breeches and stood to attention, waiting for him to acknowledge her.

"Keladry," Wyldon looked up at her with an expression in his eyes Kel had never seen before, "Domitan of Masbolle is missing."


	2. Chapter Two

The wind whipped and slashed across her face but Keladry of Mindelan, standing at the rails of the ship, couldn't feel a thing. A storm was coming. "Lady Knight!" A distant voice roared, "There be a storm comin, get below!" All at once the wind hit her and she pushed herself off the bars, flying down the ladder to her quarters. Only then did the storm seem strange to her.

"Kel," Neal appeared in the doorway.

"Come in, come in," she said. He looked exhausted. "Have you gotten any sleep lately?"

"Sure." He sat down in a chair and rubbed his eyes. "Do you think he is still out there somewhere?"

"We will find him Neal. There is no way he could keep away from you for long," Kel smiled at him, "We will bring him home." It was hard to comfort her friend when all she wanted to do was sit down and cry. She shook her head. _Crying will get you no where. What you need is a plan._

The truth of the matter was, she resented Wyldon and the King for telling her she was not allowed to rescue Dom should they find him held captive. She hadn't decided yet whether or not to follow those orders.

Glancing at Neal her eyes opened in alarm. He was glowing green. "Neal," she barked.

His head snapped up and the glow faded.

"What are you doing?" She studied his face.

"I'm trying to find him."

"This is why you look like death. Once we land we are going to need you and all of your strength." Shaking her head, she pulled him over to her bunk. "Lay down," she ordered.

He gave in and fell onto the firm mat. "I feel helpless."

"We will figure out something, I promise. For now just sleep." Kel took a seat at the desk and pulled out a map.

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Bringing her sword up, she blocked a downward chop and immediately spun to her right to parry a blow. "NEAL!" she yelled as she thrust forward and slammed her shield arm into someone's stomach.

"HERE!" Neal responded, green fire exploding from his fingertips and enveloping two more of the raiders.

She ducked under an axe and ran the rather large man through. As he dropped, the remaining bandits fled. Neal chased a few more down with his Gift and turned to Kel, breathing heavily, "Anything broken?"

Bending over, she squinted at the ground, "Not that I can tell," and picked up a silver charm half buried in the dirt. "What do you make of this?" She asked holding it out to him.

"What's that," Neal touched a finger to his bicep and with a flash, a bruise that had began to appear vanished. Coming up behind her he looked at what she held. His eyes widened in alarm, "Drop it. Drop it now."


	3. Chapter Three

A/N: I know, I know, I am a terrible person and haven't updated in FOREVER. sigh But at least I am updating now! nervous chuckle Hope you like it, tell me what you think. And thank you so much to my reviewers; I hope you all aren't toooo mad at me!

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Keladry of Mindelan was bored. She had sat for what felt like hours, seeping her hand in a potion that made her eyes water. Neal was frantically pacing back and forth inside Kel's room at the local inn, muttering to himself and nervously glancing at Kel every few minutes. And her patience was wearing thin. He had already burned her best riding gloves and forced her to change shirt and cloak so he could burn those too.

"You are over-reacting," she stated bluntly, "If the poison had gotten into my bloodstream I would be feeling its effects by now wouldn't I? Making me sit here with my hands in…in this," she glared down at the bowl, "and drinking that vile stuff is pointless and a waste of time." She took a deep breath, "We should be out searching for Dom."

Neal gaped at her, "Do you know what that _was_ that you picked up? It isn't just some hedgewitch's charm! That is powerful dark magic that could _kill_ you!" His face flushed and he raised his voice, "You are _insane_!" He threw his hands up and took a seat on the edge of the bed. Kel tried to twist around from her position at the desk to see Neal's face without much luck.

"Neal I'm fine."

"_Fine_? FINE?" He jumped back up and resumed his pacing. She sighed. He was unable to communicate with so long as he was this upset. She busied herself with examining her nails under the clear liquid. If her hands hadn't been forced into the glop she would have thought it was water.

_Water_, she snorted to herself, _it has the consistency of oil and slop_. Wrinkling her nose, she became aware Neal was talking again.

"…brewed by only the most powerful of mages. _Evil_ mages no doubt. I don't even know if Numair has enough darkness in him to do it." He turned to her. Taking a deep breath and massaging his temples he began the story.

"The inverted torch, the pendant you so carelessly picked up," she glared at him but he ignored her and continued, "symbolizes the extinction of life, or death as it is more commonly known. To touch the symbol itself is harmless, but when combined with the magic of a dark mage, the magic of _hate_, it is no longer just a representation, it becomes the ender of life." Kel's eyes flicked over to the pendant, shrouded in a protective circle on the shelf. The circle was meant to keep the dark magic locked inside, Neal was taking no chances.

He eased himself onto the floor and leaned up against the wall, "More importantly, the pendant affects different people in different ways. To most, its poison seeps through the skin and kills them painfully. Their heart slows and lungs collapse, it is not a pretty death. But it is short and can be countered if the right potion is available," he added at her shudder. "This is because it is usually meant for one person in particular and only the lightest spells laid into its make-up come to life. The maker selects his or her victim and, essentially programs the deeper spells laid into the charm to react when they come in contact with the one they seek." His face became ashen, "For the one the pendant is made for, death comes very slowly. The agony can spread over days and days, bringing the victim closer and closer to death but forcing him or her to stay alive and suffer. I will not go into detail about what it does exactly," he held up a hand when she began to protest, "Trust me, you do not need to know. It's better if you didn't. By the Gods I wish I didn't." He paused. Then suddenly, "Kel I think it was meant for you."

Keladry looked sharply at him, "What do you mean you think it was meant for me? It was a complete coincidence I picked that up. It was in the mud for Mithros' sake!"

"And it was just a coincidence the bandits were hiding outside of the inn? No bandit in his right mind waits outside of an inn! They stick to trails, waiting for a rich caravan. Why attack two weary travelers fresh off a boat from Tortall? Carthak and Tortall have a fragile understanding as it is, but the King wants this alliance to go through. The people of Carthak know and understand this. They also know to interfere would mean execution!" Neal put his head in his hands and mumbled something else.

"What did you say?" Kel asked.

He raised his head and looked her square in the eye. The next words he spoke were to her face, not his knees, "When you picked that pendant up, it glowed…no, reeked of magic. I can't explain it very well, but even I could see the thing dripping with active spells, _as soon as you touched it_. Thank the Gods you had your gloves on…" he didn't need to finish his sentence, she knew what he would say next. _Or you would be dead_.

They sat in silence for some minutes, each contemplating the ramifications of Kel handling the pendant. Kel was the first to break the silence.

"How much longer do I keep my hands in this?" she asked.

"Not long. Unfortunately it doesn't matter much past a few bells of time how long your hands stay submerged. They just need time to absorb the power within the potion."

Kel was suddenly very afraid. Did the poison manage to penetrate her gloves? Something this powerful…who knows what it is capable of. Stealing another glance at the flickering light of the spell surrounding the pendant, Dom sprang to her thoughts. What had happened to him? And why him? To get to her? Was Neal right, was the inverted torch really meant for her? It was almost too much for her to bear. She forced Dom from her thoughts. She could do nothing for him for the moment. Not as immobile as this.

"Kel? Are you alright?" Neal's voice cracked in worry.

She turned to him and forced a small smile, "I am fine, don't worry."

He smiled tiredly at her and for the first time since entering the room she realized his exhaustion from previous nights aboard the ship had not entirely faded. That, combined with the magic he was using to save her life, was draining him. Making up her mind, she withdrew her hands from the bowl. To her surprise, they came out clean and dry. She wiggled her fingers, making fists and attempted to work feeling back into them. Neal watched her in a solemn silence.

After a few moments, her hands began to act as they were supposed to and she moved from the chair to the floor, next to Neal. "You need sleep," she whispered.

He laughed bitterly, "My dear Keladry, I couldn't sleep a wink even if I wanted to."

Kel shook her head and stood, motioning for him to get up as well. When they were both standing, she found their faces incredibly close. Her mind screamed at her, asking her what she was doing. _What about Dom?_ Some part of her brought him back to her thoughts. She found Neal was looking at her intently, searching for something in her eyes. Suddenly his lips were on hers, his hand caressing the small of her back. She tensed at first, but soon relaxed, letting the soothing feeling of his touch flow through her body, sliding her own hands up his arms. He broke the kiss off, color flooding his cheeks, "Kel I…I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me. The potion has done all it can, now we just have to wait. I, I really should be getting to bed. Goodnight," he said awkwardly and strode across her room to the connecting door, locking it behind him as he entered his own rooms. He had insisted they lock the outside doors just in case more surprises awaited them as they left one another for the night.

Kel stood for a while after he left, thoughts swirling through her brain. What was it she was feeling for Neal? And what _about_ Dom? Looking back at her hands, she sighed unhappily. Neal had been right, all they could do was wait. Wait to see if the poison carried out its purpose, wait to help Dom, wait to act.

A sudden stifling heat came over her and she hurried to open up the top shutters in her room. She undressed and slid into bed wearing nothing more than a loincloth and the lightest shirt she could find. Tossing and turning, she could feel the heat rising, settling over her like a thick blanket. Finally she could bear it no more and lay down on the cool flagstones facing the door connecting her room to Neal's.

A tear rolled slowly off her cheek and onto the stone. _Oh for Mithros' sake! Snap out of it! _She angrily wiped the wetness from her face. A light knocking on the connecting door nearly made her yell but she bit her tongue just in time, wincing at the sharp sting. She sat up and heard the lock click open. The door swung out, revealing Neal, clad in nothing but soft breeches.

"Kel?" his voice was hoarse.

She stood and took his hand, pulling him into her room and shutting the door. He buried his face deep in her shoulder and she held him. He looked up, eyes bright, a question in them. She responded by meeting his lips with hers as they kissed for what seemed like an eternity. Suddenly, he scooped her up and carried her to the bed, lying down with her wrapped securely in his arms.

And finally, sleep came inside of Kel's room.

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A/N A/N A/N: What do you think! I for one, am proud of myself for writing so much. It may not seem like a lot but it really directed me down a certain path, as in cough cough Kel and Neal cough. My other story will probably be a KD but for this one, Kel and Neal just…works…. I do have a few questions. First, is the description of the pendant (what it does) too much? I don't want it to be terribly horrifying if that offends readers because I don't mind toning it down. Second, does anyone know what any of these characters wear to bed? I had some trouble with that one but I hope it seems like it would be something realistic for Tortall. And to clarify a few things: They are in Carthak and at the moment a fragile alliance/understanding, whatever you want to call it, exists. That will change soon though. And the heat Kel experienced (stifling heat blah blah) may turn out to be effects of the poison but for the moment its just fear and stress induced. Sorry this A/N is so long by the way! And lastly, please let me know if things don't seem right or there are any discrepancies. I really want to make this story as good as possible. Thanks again to all my reviewers!


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